Diamond Appraisals = Worthless (Per Ebay)

[gemsandgadgets]

I recently sold a diamond ring for a friend who has divorced.  She had an appraisal done on the ring in 2014, and since then it has sat in a local Jewelry Store showroom with no bites.  She thought she would try Ebay, so I sold it for her.  The buyer claims she took it to two jewelers who told her the ring had been 'filled', and there was no mention of this in the appraisal, therefore she returned it "Not As Described".  It cost me $55 to ship it.  Luckily the buyer was one of the nicest ever, and returned it on her own dime, and also refunded me the original $55.  When I spoke with Ebay about the "Not As Described" issue, their response was "We don't know what has happened to it since the appraisal" (when I know full well it sat in a showcase the entire time).  Well, technically, if the appraisal had been done a week ago, they could make the same claim... so when does that stop???  It doesn't.  This tells me that when a buyer returns an item, an appraisal is worthless, and Ebay will always side with the buyer.  Ebay seems to have a rebuttal for everything.  So update your listings folks... and include a clause for that period of time between when the appraisal was done, and the ring was sold.

[missjen831]

I don’t see where eBay did anything wrong. The appraisal was done 3 years ago. That’s 3 years in which the ring could been altered. You or your friend should have it appraised just before listing it on eBay, although there is no guarantee eBay would have accepted it.

[gemsandgadgets]

So how often should one have rings appraised?  We all know rings can sit here for years before selling.

[emerald40]

In -Store appraisals are useless.  It is like a fox guarding the hen house.

You need a third party appraisal, preferably GIA or EGL USA.

[gemsandgadgets]

This has an EGL appraisal.  What Ebay is saying is ALL appraisals are worthless.

[emerald40]

EGL (as opposed to EGL USA) was disbanded because they were so corrupt.  Their appraisals are useless.

Does it say anything on there about the diamond being clarity enhanced?

[sandmansales]

ebay automatically rules in the buyer's favor the majority of the time. Circumstances including yours are completely irrelevant.

Even assuming ebay actually fired up a brain cell in these cases, appraisals can be altered like every thing else online. With limited exceptions, absolutely nothing can be proved in the online world.

[18704d]

 "The buyer claims she took it to two jewelers who told her the ring had been 'filled', and there was no mention of this in the appraisal, therefore she returned it "Not As Described".

...

When I spoke with Ebay about the "Not As Described" issue, their response was "We don't know what has happened to it since the appraisal" (when I know full well it sat in a showcase the entire time). "
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What else should eBay do?

What if you, yourself bought a comparable ring on eBay.. received a ring which a fraudulent seller had switched with a "filled" ring.

Would you want the seller to win and you be out of money, because the listing showed something nice?  Something you didn't receive because they sent something different?

Appraisals or not, eBay really doesn't know what sellers actually send

and buyers actually receive.

?

Lynn

[d-k_treasures]

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@18704d wrote:

 "The buyer claims she took it to two jewelers who told her the ring had been 'filled', and there was no mention of this in the appraisal, therefore she returned it "Not As Described".

...

When I spoke with Ebay about the "Not As Described" issue, their response was "We don't know what has happened to it since the appraisal" (when I know full well it sat in a showcase the entire time). "
-----------

What else should eBay do?

What if you, yourself bought a comparable ring on eBay.. received a ring which a fraudulent seller had switched with a "filled" ring.

Would you want the seller to win and you be out of money, because the listing showed something nice?  Something you didn't receive because they sent something different?

Appraisals or not, eBay really doesn't know what sellers actually send

and buyers actually receive.

?

Lynn

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They didn't say it was a gold 'filled' ring - they said 'it had been filled', which I took to mean that they enlarged it and added more gold if it was needed.

The only thing for the OP to do is to take it back and have it checked out again.

[newnewnewmann]

Your buyer is a gem, especially giving you $55 back, although I don't understand how the shipping was that high.

[emerald40]

I took it as filled meaning it was not a natural diamond but it had been clarity enhanced.

[d-k_treasures]

And unless the light is playing tricks, check the 4th and 3rd to last photos. It kinda look like it was enlarged.

[d-k_treasures]

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@emerald40 wrote:

I took it as filled meaning it was not a natural diamond but it had been clarity enhanced.

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Could be - got me. The only thing I know about diamonds are that if they are on saw blades, they cut very well.

[chipper01work]

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@new-man7 wrote:

Your buyer is a gem, especially giving you $55 back, although I don't understand how the shipping was that high.

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Probably insurance.

[gemsandgadgets]

This post was for informational purposes only.  I didn't expect Ebay to do anything.  The reason I called them to begin with is because the buyer and I worked out the shipping issue among ourselves, however with Ebay's automated system, it didn't allow us to 'return' the item in the way we had worked out.  So it was done another way.  Just letting you all know that appraisals are not worth the paper they're written on... whether it was 4 years or 4 days ago.